Breast cancer affects the lives of more than 180,000 women in the United States each year, and is one of the leading causes of death in women. As a result, early detection is important, and screening of all women is encouraged. Efficient and effective methods for screening are therefore a significant goal in the health care industry.
Diagnosis and treatment by noninvasive MRI is one method that has been shown to greatly enhance both detection, and survival of breast cancer. In conventional breast MRI, a local “breast” RF coil is utilized to receive signals from breast tissues being examined. Breast coils, however, are typically designed to image the breast in a prone position, and to provide a uniform signal to noise ratio over a large volume of interest corresponding to a statistically large breast size.
These coils are specifically constructed to image a predetermined volume of tissue comprising a predetermined quantity of salty water calculated based on the size of a normal breast. While suitable for imaging in these applications, however, RF coils designed for normal breasts have a significantly reduced signal to noise ratio when applied to breasts that are small in size, such as those which have been surgically altered due to full or partial mastectomy, and male breasts. To increase the signal-to-noise ratio, it is desirable to customize the coils to the size and shape of individual breasts. The present invention addresses these issues.